I don’t think anyone is saying the power amp isn’t important or that it doesn’t impart a pleasing sound. It most certainly does, and I’d argue it’s just as important as the preamp as far as tone and response. But, I can’t think of a single high gain amp that sounds good at noon or above. I know some like the SLO up around 1 o’clock and that might be kind of an exception, but then again it’s still doing exactly what a power amp does when it distorts. EVH’s, Rectos, 5150s, Engl’s, diezel, or anything similar to these amps; they all sound pretty terrible with the master that high.
I remember I bought my first “real” amp when I was 13, a 5150 and some shitty 4x12. I couldn’t wait until my parents left the house so I could crank it way up to 5 or 6, because “that’s how tube amps sound best”…well, I did and….it was quite underwhelming. I couldn’t understand why the tone got muddy, less low end, more mids etc. why did it sound like this I thought to myself. This sounds like shit to me, am I deaf? Do I not like tube amps? What am I missing here….
I wasn’t missing anything. My ears weren’t lying to me, the amp sounds like garbage in general above about 3.5 or so on the post volume, and even then I don’t run it past about 2- or 2.5 when recording. It took me years and years to understand what my ears were hearing, and the myth of high gain amps needing “cranked way up” to sound best. They don’t. At all. Not one time have I ever heard any of these style amps super loud and sound “better”
On that note, yes the power amp is super important to reiterate. Pushing it slightly is one thing. And depending on your amp, it probably maxes out in headroom wayyyyy sooner than you think: the recto series comes to mind. But they for sure don’t need to be pushed into overdrive, at all.
